Watching
by Politelycynical
Summary: "He wasn't stalking her… exactly. They just happened to have similar schedules." Gabriel finds himself drawn to a blonde girl. Peter wants to help. Set in an A/U on a college campus. No powers.
1. Watch

**Watching**

**Chapter One**

**"Watch"**

Gabriel Petrelli was covertly staring at a blonde girl. He had been staring at this particular girl for weeks now. _She _was in a couple of his classes, and he couldn't seem to keep his eyes off of her.

He wasn't stalking her… _exactly. _They just happened to have similar schedules. And the parts of his schedule that didn't mesh with hers were slowly beginning to shift.

That's why he had entered the library two hours earlier than he would on any other day. Studying more often wasn't a bad thing. Although, Gabriel admittedly got little work done whenever she was in his line of sight.

"You look like a serial killer, you know."

Gabriel quickly snapped his attention back to his forgotten textbook as his brother plopped down in the seat in front of him. Peter dumped his bag unceremoniously onto the table with a loud thud. Gabriel quickly chased after the loose papers that Peter had disturbed. "I have no idea what you're talking about."

Peter grinned lopsidedly at his fraternal twin. "I have caught you looking at the same girl all week long."

"You are mistaken."

"You should just go over there and make your move-" Peter began.

Gabriel quickly interjected, "I would… if I were stupid."

Peter continued as if Gabriel had not spoken, "There are tons of lines that you could say to her. Call her an angel. That works on most girls."

"This is not even up for discussion." Gabriel said, adjusting his glasses and clothing nervously.

Peter began to take out his poorly arranged notebooks, which were bursting at the seams with crumpled up paper. Gabriel glared at the binders with his normal level of hatred. His brother was an unbelievable slob, and they could not have been more different. They loved each other and got along okay, but Gabriel had always liked keeping things neat, and Peter had been a slob for the last 20 years of their lives.

He shook this train of thought out of his head and glanced at his book again and soon realized that it wasn't even the right textbook. He had a paper due in engineering for next week and had his English literature book open. Gabriel glanced up at Peter, who had also made this connection and was grinning like an idiot.

"Faust was probably an expert at Engineering."

"Shut up." Gabriel placed the book back into his well-organized bag and withdrew the appropriate text

Peter laughed loudly. He received glares from the other students around them, who quickly gathered their books and huffily stomped their way to a quieter corner of the library.

Peter seemed unphased, "What's her name?"

Gabriel hand gripped his pen tightly. "I already said that I'm not talking about this. Shut up and do your homework." He demanded.

"It's okay. Don't tell me. I'll just go ask." Peter rose and turned towards the blonde's table. The color drained out of Gabriel's face as he began to protest in hushed, furious whispers. _"Sit down right now! Just stay out of it, please!"_

Peter sat back down in his chair and propped his head up on his elbow as Gabriel sat his forehead on the desk trying to calm down.

_She_ sighed lightly, causing Gabriel to once again become entranced by her. Her pen was apparently out of ink, and she began to look through her purse for a replacement.

"I don't know her name." Gabriel admitted quietly, feeling completely miserable.

Peter smiled. It seemed like Peter was always smiling, a fact that often bothered Gabriel. Peter seemed to have all the luck. He was an idiot, but he was better looking than Gabriel and had social skills that Gabriel had never seemed to learn. Peter was laid back. He wore hoodies (that probably needed to be washed) and jeans no matter what the occasion was. And to Gabriel it seemed like Peter always knew what to say to girls. Gabriel never knew what to say… or if he should even say anything at all to them.

He dressed in khakis and button down shirts most days, and often wore sweaters over his button downs. He wore loafers and had thick glasses that he always seemed to be readjusting on his face.

"She's a damsel in distress. You should go offer her a pen and ask her what her name is."

"You called me a serial killer less than two minutes ago." He stated in a quiet, small voice. "You think it won't occur to her that a stranger sitting across the room should not notice something as small as her pen's malfunction?"

_She_ smiled brightly as she pulled a fresh pen out of her purse.

"Well, it's too late now. She found one." Peter confirmed. "You've missed your chance."

A girl with short dark hair walked past them and approached their blonde subject. _She_ smiled at her friend and moved some of her stuff so that the new arrival with a pixie cut could sit down.

"I would really like it if you would just do your nursing homework about how everything can be cured with a kiss and a hug, and just stay out of my personal life." Gabriel begged.

"What personal life?" Peter observed. "Anyways. Recon time." Peter rose from the table and crouched low to the ground, sneaking around tables to get close to the girls without alerting them to his presence.

"_What are you doing?" _Gabriel quickly whispered, but Peter was already out of range. He covered his mouth in horror.

Gabriel sat frozen as he watched his brother do tactical rolls towards _the girl._

He couldn't believe this was happening. Peter was such a moron, and he was going to ruin everything. Gabriel's mouth was dry and his body was unmoving as he watched Peter's progress with terror. Thankfully, the girls were engrossed in their conversation, and they didn't notice Peter hide behind a nearby computer station. Gabriel shook his head with silent fury, wishing that Peter had just _sat down_ at the computer, instead of hiding behind it. It would have been much less suspicious.

Gabriel was actually a little surprised that Peter had not picked up on this crush sooner. She was all that he had been thinking about. She was in a couple of his engineering classes, and she was often at the gym the same time as he was every day. He hadn't said hi to her. He hadn't even made eye contact with her. At the gym he would occasionally glance at her through the aid of the many mirrors. And in class he would sit in the back and watch her take an endless supply of notes.

What he did know about her was that she was as studious as he was. She was in the same program as he was. She didn't frequent any of the parties that Peter had ever drug him to. And he knew that she was absolutely the most beautiful girl he had ever laid eyes on.

And of course, he knew that he had no chance in hell with her.

In the distance, Gabriel noticed Peter crawl behind a nearby bookshelf.

Gabriel could not imagine what sins he must have committed to have been given Peter as a brother, but obviously this was his punishment for something horrible.

Peter stayed behind the bookshelves circling the study tables as he made his way back to Gabriel.

Even after his show of stealth, Peter still caused and unnecessary ruckus as he sat down at Gabriel's table.

Gabriel glared daggers at his brother. "_What the hell do you think you were doing?" _He whispered harshly.

"Oh, I was eavesdropping." Peter responded as if it were the most obvious thing in the world.

Gabriel stared at him in silent rage.

Peter drew back slightly. "Yikes. Do you at least want to know what I learned?"

Gabriel glumly nodded.

"Her name is Elle Bishop, and I'm pretty sure she lives in our building."

**Words : **1411

**Author's Notes:** So, this has been bouncing around in my head all day long. I read a story last night called **Comics 101 & Human Anatomy 202 by Hornless Bull. ** Obviously, this story is very similar to that one. That story is a oneshot, but once I read it, I couldn't get it out of my head and wanted to read or write something longer. Well, tell me what you think. I'm going to try to keep my head in the Heroes mindset, so I'll probably be able to come up with some more story shortly. Until then, thanks for reading. (Also, I don't own Heroes. Obviously.)


	2. Jolt

**Watching**

**Chapter 2**

"**Jolt"**

"That's preposterous." Gabriel said, lying stiffly on his bed. "There's no way she lives in this building."

Peter rolled his eyes. "And why would you be so sure about something like that?"

Without thinking, Gabriel replied. "Because I would have noticed."

"You are a total stalker, aren't you?" Peter laughed good heartedly.

Gabriel blushed and turned over towards the wall. "Shut up."

Peter stared at his brother's back, shaking his head. "Look. She was complaining about how the elevator was down in her building." He reasoned. "I cleverly realized that the elevator is down in OUR building."

Gabriel peeked over his shoulder. "It could be a coincidence."

Peter was hunting around the floor for a "clean" shirt. "Yeah, but it's not. Her friend said that she wanted to go to the house party this weekend."

Gabriel flipped onto his back. "What house party?"

Peter tossed a crumpled up piece of paper at Gabriel's head. "The one that we're having here. I've totally told you about it like 4 times. I helped organize it."

Gabriel flicked the offending paper away from his person, before angling it so he could read it. "Alright. Maybe she lives here."

"I'm glad you're caught up." Peter stated. "Want to go grab a coffee with me?"

"No." Gabriel immediately replied.

"You might see Elle on the way." Peter pointed out.

"Okay." Gabriel drug himself out of the bed, and started to change into a more presentable shirt.

Peter reached into Gabriel's closet and grabbed a hoodie. "Just wear this. You're not going to get dates if you keep dressing like you're on your way to church." He handed it to Gabriel, who glared at it intensely before putting it on.

Gabriel was on the look out the whole way for Elle. Talking to Peter had completely messed up his day of… observing her. He hadn't gone to the gym and hadn't seen her on any of her usual routes around campus.

The fact that these detours with Peter had caused Gabriel to feel lonely was not lost on him. He realized that this was not how normal people acted. But this was his way of liking someone, and he did want to meet her. He just didn't have the courage to say hello.

He and Peter placed their orders with the barista at the coffee shop, and Peter quickly excused himself to the bathroom. He waited awkwardly at the "pick up" counter. These kinds of situations were always dreaded by Gabriel. Standing near a sticky counter and waiting for a male coffee shop employee with seven earrings to impatiently bellow out his name was not Gabriel's idea of fun.

He felt nervous, anticipating when it would be his turn to quickly grab the coffee cups, and wished that Peter would come back so that he could pretend to be interested in a conversation. Gabriel suddenly had an idea and took out his cell phone. He pretended like he was texting while he waited.

He glanced up hopefully when the spiky-haired barista approached. "Elle!" The barista yelled loudly.

_Shit._ This could not be happening. He stared blankly ahead of him as a girl brushed past him. He inhaled in the most subtle way that he could to breathe in her beautiful scent. She examined her order. "This was supposed to be a large." She showed the barista her receipt. He quickly walked off to correct her order. Elle shifted nervously back and forth before glancing at Gabriel.

Gabriel made sure that he looked like he was busy with his phone. He was holding his breath and terrified.

"Hey, you're my running buddy." She said to him.

His mouth was so very dry. Where the hell was that coffee? He feigned surprise and responded in the least nervous way that he could manage. "What are you saying about?" Gabriel inwardly kicked himself repeatedly. _That is not how people talk._

Elle didn't seem to notice his stumble. "We're always at the gym at the same time. You run on a treadmill near mine." She smiled politely as she explained, her eyes shining.

Gabriel's face unknowingly reflected her own small smile. "Oh, yeah. I guess I've seen you there." _That's right, Gabriel. _He told himself. _Just play it cool and pretend like you have barely noticed. _

He noticed Peter appear behind Elle and quickly hide behind a small potted plant.

She extended her hand towards him, "I'm Elle."

The barista bellowed nearby, but Gabriel could barely hear him. He reached his hand towards hers and shook it gently. He felt a spark pass between them. Her skin was soft, her hair was reflecting the evening sunlight, and she was looking at him with the smallest smile playing on her lips. "I'm—"

"Gabriel!" The barista called out directly beside his ear. "Gabriel and Peter?!"

The coffee employee looked annoyed, and Gabriel quickly realized that the barista had yelled his name repeatedly. He let go of Elle's hand and took the coffees, muttering an apology to the employee.

The employee named Zach glared at him with a fake smile and stomped away. Gabriel awkwardly turned back to Elle.

"I'm Gabriel." He replied quietly.

Zach came back with Elle's coffee. He was a lot nicer when he was giving it to her, and cast an angry sneer in Gabriel's direction. She thanked the employee. "Well, it was nice to finally meet you." She smiled at him again, and touched his arm. "I'll see you around, running buddy."

"Yeah." He responded, breathless. As she walked away, he took a second to look over her. The sunlight was behind her, and it made her hair almost glow like a halo. Her hair was hanging loosely around her shoulders, which was odd for her. She normally wore it up in the library, in classes, and at the gym. Gabriel decided that he preferred it down. She was wearing jeans and a soft looking pale blue sweater. He couldn't believe that he had just met her.

Peter excitedly ran up to him. "What are the odds, huh? I told you we'd run into her!" He exclaimed loudly.

Gabriel snapped out of his daze at Peter's _very loud_ voice. "_Shhhhh!" _Gabriel shushed him. Peter grabbed his coffee from Gabriel's hand, and they began their walk back to their dorm.

Upon arrival, Gabriel stopped to check their mail at the mailboxes. And there she was again. She was struggling to pull a large box out of one of the parcel slots.

Peter stood beside him. "Go." Peter insisted.

Gabriel quickly handed Peter their mail and shoved him towards the door, urging him to go away. He walked up to her. "Hey, again." He said. She glanced up and smiled, looking flustered. "Do you need help?" He continued.

She beamed at his assistance. "Yes!" She was exasperated. "They really shoved it in there." Gabriel knelt down beside the metal opening and began to ease the package out of its tight cubby hole.

One of the corners was hung on the metal casing. Elle leaned over, propping her hands on her knees nearby, watching him retrieve the box. He felt her hair graze his shoulder. He reached up into the narrow space available in the cubby and released Elle's package from its confining prison. It easily slid out.

He stood up, smiling and handed her the box. Their fingers brushed against each other as she took it from him. She thanked him, with her perfect smile adorning her face.

He nervously adjusted his glasses. "You're welcome."

He watched as she tried to balance her coffee on top of the her parcel. He took the box back from her. "I can carry it, if you would like." He said quietly. Elle took his coffee from him, and they both entered the building.

The elevator was still down. Both sighed and approached the stairwell. As they entered the dingy, poorly lit stairwell, they heard sneakers above them rushing inconspicuously up the steps. _Peter._

"I had no idea you lived here, running buddy." Elle said as she made her way up the stairs. She stopped at the second floor and held the door open for him. He lived on the third floor. They walked up to her dorm room. She opened the door and led him into her room. Gabriel was in awe. In less than an hour, he had gone from not ever having spoken to her to being in her room. He felt intoxicated by her scent that lingered.

She gestured for him to place to package on her desk. He complied as he observed the rest of the room. Her clothes were neatly hanging up in her closet. Her books were stacked precisely on her desk, and her bed looked… very inviting. He urged the latter thought out of his head. She sat their coffees on her desk and removed her large purse that was hanging across her body. She turned back to him and placed her hand in his.

"Thank you so much. You're very helpful." She observed.

Gabriel couldn't breathe around her. "It's one of my many talents." He stammered in what he hoped was a flirty way.

She eyed him with intensity. "Are you going to be here for the house party tomorrow?" She asked, stepping closer to him.

Gabriel felt dizzy from her close proximity, but quickly answered her question. "Yeah, um- my brother is organizing it, so I'll probably be there." His glasses fogged up from his unsteady breathing.

She looked up at his tall form while standing below him. "Good." She replied simply. She stepped back and retrieved his coffee for him, placing it in his hand. "So, it's a date."

He swallowed nervously while taking his cup. "S-sure." _Please don't let this be a dream._

Elle smiled and walked him to the door. "Bye, runni—"

"Gabriel. Call me Gabriel." He insisted, turning back to face her.

Her breathless smile crept back on her face. "Goodbye, Gabriel."

He stepped into the hall. "Goodbye, Elle."

**Words:** 1661

**Author's Notes: ** So, normally I use the very early morning from 4:30 to 7 to sleep a little bit more. I wake up early with my husband most days and then fall back asleep. But this morning I decided to break that awful habit by writing another chapter to "Watching". What you do think? Do you like it? Do you hate it? Let me know! And check back later for more chapters!


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